The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Tamil Nadu Police has published a warning against cryptocurrency dealings. In a press release, the Tamil Nadu Police EOW urged residents of the state not to get entangled in cryptocurrency transactions owing chance of fraud and other criminal activities. An extract from the press statement cited by The Hindu reads:

“A few cases of investors of cryptocurrencies being cheated have been reported in Tamil Nadu. Cases have been registered, and the accused were arrested. The public is at this moment advised not to deal with cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoins, Ethereum, Ripple, and more. Those trading in virtual currencies were doing so at their own risk, given that the Central bank has not given a license or authorization to any company to deal in such cryptocurrencies.”

Indian law implementation has come down strong on crypto-related crimes in the country with several seizures made over the last few years. The police in India have also seized cryptos from speculated Ponzi schemes.

As earlier reported by BTCManager, the country’s national police academy injected a plan to guide officers in crypto crime inquiries back in mid-2019. These law implementation actions have come among the backdrop of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) prohibition on commercial banks giving services to cryptocurrency businesses.

Cryptos are not Currency

As part of its advice against participating in crypto commerce, the Tamil Nadu EOW stated that cryptos are neither Currency nor regulated investment instruments such as derivatives. According to the statement, the lack of a regulatory framework for the industry signifies victims of deceitful crypto investment schemes have restricted avenues to rectify their complaints and press claims for damages.

Back in January 2020, the RBI claimed against the utility of cryptocurrency in India, claiming that the country’s financial framework already has operating cross-border remittance solutions. India’s central bank also explained the legal status of cryptocurrency in the country, saying there was no blanket ban.

The RBI is still fastened in a legal dispute with industry stakeholders before the Supreme Court over the former’s ban on commercial banks extending services to crypto exchanges. In 2019, an inter-ministerial committee suggested a total crypto prohibition with fines and prison sentences for people found dealing in virtual currencies.

While cryptos still seem anathema for government agencies in India, the situation is contrary to blockchain adoption. Various government parastatals have asked for greater blockchain adoption with NITI Aayog lately, referring to the blockchain as “the new trust paradigm.”